Comments

Poorly written article.The author fails to compare apples with apples here. He didn't state that the SME was protectionist only toward small and medium enterprises. These are the grassroots businesses that provide much of the income for the bulk of our population, and very much need to be protected in the face of increasing competition from foreigners putting them out of business. In the absence of a State social welfare system, a protectionist small business policy is an urgent need to our people. This article implies that the policy intends to shut the door to all foreign investment which is untrue. We welcome large foreign investors for the for the spinoff business opportunities they create for local SMEs.

Win, on one hand you criticise selective protectionism but on the other hand you acknowledge the economic rise of Malaysia, Taiwan, and Japan. Wasn't their rise partly because of selective protectionism while certain industries were in their infancy (then opening them to competition after they became stronger)? Shouldn't this be more a debate about WHICH sectors still need foreign investment and foreign skills (meaning profits shipped off-shore) and WHICH sectors require protection?

I agree with you and I think it's time the government make it mandatory for any foreign business intent on doing business in PNG to have a 50 percent partnership with local businesses so that local businesses can benefit from their comparative advantages such as skills, technology, finance and networks to prosper and at the the same time be open to potentially enter other foreign markets themselves through these partnerships.

Excellent ideas, Ash. Also, I can't help but feel that a PokemonGo-inspired effort is in order ('SDGs: gotta meet 'em all!') 🙂

Such programs are termed as sustainable academic development in which impact information are disseminated through learning and its benefits are indeed unspeakable!

It is easy to criticise efforts that are in an early stage, like the IATI Studio or D-Portal, but as Siem correctly points out there is very limited funding available for this type of work. Building a comprehensive data solution that allows us to compare IATI data from different countries and organisations effectively is actually a fairly substantial task. An even bigger task is actually to get all the organisations and governments to actually report meaningful IATI data. Something which you correctly point out is slow in forthcoming. The organisations which are working on these type of data systems, including the one I am working with, Akvo Foundation, have been talking to quite a few funders and UN organisations about this. But there is little coordinated effort to create a source of funding where systems like this could be supported. Siem and his team is doing really good work with limited resources. I know this, having worked quite a lot with them early on. What the governments and organisations who have committed to publishing IATI data should do, is get together and provide funding for efforts like IATI Studio, d-portal and others, so we can get from working with data as a nice concept to actually drawing the benefits from the data. Thomas Bjelkeman-Pettersson Co-director, Akvo Foundation

Thanks. Do you think the Kina will appreciate against the US Dollars and Japanese Yen this year?

Kate and Pippa, thanks for this illuminating analysis - this is a really important discussion and much overdue. Your innovation point is particularly well made. it reminds me of the policy emphasis given to women's economic empowerment and the lack of funds aid agencies actually commit to it (among so many competing priorities). You note that "Science and development agencies must collaborate to achieve a strategic alignment between what the science community does and what the global health community needs. To this end, the science community could also helpfully communicate more in the language of public health and less in the language of antibodies and targets." Your thoughts please: in working out the effectiveness of public health programmes to what extent should development practitioners consider the OECD DAC evaluation criteria - the WHO has an evaluation guideline which suggests this is appropriate. Do you as health analysts interact with these criteria, and if not, how do you assess the effectiveness of programmes? Would a common evaluation agenda help bring the science and health communities together?

Health and Education spending in PNG could be likened to a reverse feeding chain. Instead of the minnows and sardines first getting the plankton and then becoming food for the pelagic fish like tuna that are then eaten by sharks, the sharks are gobbling up all the food with any crumbs left for the larger fish with nothing for the sardines and minnows that actually support the food chain. In that scenario, clearly something will inevitable collapse. People who live in a 'western style country' don't seem to be able to comprehend that the same values and structures aren't available or have been allowed to atrophy due to lack or attention or by design in a 'developing country'. A few years ago in Milne Bay, it was reported in the PNG media there was a large gathering of press, health care workers and people who witnessed a local member handing over a large cheque to assist the local Hospital. After the media had taken photos of the presentation and departed the member told the surprised hospital staff how they were now to re-credit the cheque to his personal bank account. Anecdotes I receive indicate that all levels, corruption bleeds any available government funding to the point that very little reportedly reaches those who are actually in need of it. Apparently, the view of an increasing number of those in responsible positions is that if the opportunity exists, take it. If the PNG government sets the precedence, why resist some may say?

I love the Spice Girls ad - I think it's a really effective comms tool, particularly for those who are in their late 20s/early 30s and lived through the Spice Girls era (aka... me!). It brings a bunch of celebrity ambassadors on board as well, and it has been shared like crazy. I would say it is the best communications effort around the SDGs so far - particularly effective as it actually highlights the targets that sit under the goal as well, and encourages interactivity. Also, it is just good fun. Will be interesting if this approach will be able to be translated to other goals. It makes me wonder what other pop songs we could use to promote the SDGs? 'Hot in here' by Nelly to raise awareness on climate change? So many options. I personally would be looking to see if Salt'n'Pepper were keen to use 'Push it' to promote any of the goals really, because all the goals need a really big push - you can have that idea for free, UN.

Update: The Minister for Education, Nick Kuman, has <a href="http://news.pngfacts.com/2016/05/parking-tff-infrastructure-component.html" rel="nofollow">recently suggested that</a>, while approved by Cabinet in late 2015, the DEICs have yet to be implemented throughout the country, with mechanisms still to be finalised. Subsequent fieldwork in Gulf and East New Britain has confirmed that these institutions are not in operation in these provinces, although there is much concern about how they might work in practice once they are rolled out.

Thanks Richard for the good research on the gender violence related to alcohol consumptions in Bougainville. There are other gender violence studies that also identified others causes of gender violence between marriages, families and in societies as well that provides extent of harm to individuals, families and societies which impacts development. How to address the different factors contributing to gender violence, especially violence against mothers, wives and daughters does not require a single method of remedy. Taking legislative reforms to put in place laws to prosecute perpetrators and victims of gender violence would not improve the situation and in fact not a solution to the problem. To find solution to gender violence is more than institutional and legislative reforms in the society. Concrete solution is explored when the country’s economic and development capacity is able to support and sustain measures to reach real solutions to gender violence. For example, the above study identified alcohol as related to gender violence, however this could be the secondary cause, the primary factor would be poverty and to improve it will depend on Bougainville’s economy and development phase. So in real world, solution to gender violence is still a long way away.